Sucessful Hunt Tactics and Stories

[CurlyTail]

I would like to start a thread where members share stories of their successful Elk harvests.

I would like people to emphasize the tactics employed, and an analysis of the small details that closed the deal. We have all had close encounters that were not successful, and we learn from them, but it may prove educational and entertaining to hear success stories and why you think things worked out.

Did you just get lucky? I doubt it. Right place, right time? Calling strategies? Lets hear your story


I will start with the story of our very first successful Elk hunt - a nice cow Elk. I say "our" because I always team hunt with my Brother, and one of us has the tag, and the other is the "hauler and caller." We split the meat and the processing costs, and both of us agree that each season it is as much fun as the years when we possess a tag. In our hunting area, you can only get a tag every other year or so.

It was our second season Elk hunting. The first year, we had multiple close encounters, but could not seal the deal. Enough to get us totally fired up about Elk hunting, but not satisfied with our results. It was clear we didn't know what to do once the Elk were located. We stayed up late the night before the Archery opener discussing tactics, and what we wanted for the season. We agreed on the concept that any Elk with a bow is a trophy, and that my brother would not pass on the first legal animal. We would live to regret this fateful decision.

We decided to sit a saddle on opening morning figuring that hunting pressure would press some Elk out of their prime habitat up over the pass into a very deep and steep valley for security. Despite the absence of a well defined game trail, that was our tactic for the day. On the way up the mountain in the dark, we bumped a mother Black Bear and 3 cubs, and had 2 small Bull Elk spook away from us. Memorable hike indeed. Upon arrival, we selected a spot overlooking the natural pinch point, on the downwind side of the pass. We got settled in, began looking around, and low and behold - there was a perfect huge 6 point Elk Shed on the ground no more than 5 yards away. Another good omen. Also my first Shed.

It wasn't long before two Cow Elk appeared and crossed the saddle - Out of Range. We decided to re-position to in front of a rock formation in the center of the Saddle, in order to better cover the area. Now I was the designated caller, and had been practicing all summer. I still wasn't very good or very confident in my calling, but I was dying to try. My brother thought we were better off staying silent. I finally talked him into letting me call about 9am. A couple of soft mews. Sounded pretty decent. I got an immediate reply with multiple mews from down the valley. I answered with more mews. The mews were frequent and loud and getting closer. I thought they were real Elk. My brother thought it was another Hunter with a Hoochie Mama and a thumb spasm. "Listen to that guy, he is wearing out that call".

Next thing you know - here comes another cow Elk, followed by a second - following the exact path of the Elk that had passed through earlier in the morning. My brother let the first Cow pass, then drew his bow undetected as the next approached. About this time, I can hear multiple hoof beats coming up the pass, and it becomes clear that an entire herd is about to show. My Brother is at full draw, with his 30 yard pin on the vitals of his first Elk, when I start tugging on his pant leg hissing "don't shoot, don't shoot!". He releases his arrow and it flies true - a perfect heart shot. The Cow stood for a second, then tipped over and began to roll down the steep hill. At that very moment a majestic and rather huge 6 x 6 Bull pops into sight and stares down the dead Cow Elk rolling down the hill. The herd of about 25 Elk then tops out on the pass - spooked - and proceed to stampede through the pass at about 10 yards. Cows, calves, spikes, raghorns, dust, hoof beats - what a ruckus, what a sight! I started tugging on my Brothers pant leg hissing "reload, reload!" As the Herd Bull passed, I gave a cow call and stopped him broadside at 10 yards for about 10 seconds. Luckily, my Brother was calmer and more under control than me, and he let the big guy pass with a bittersweet grin. He said " I already have my trophy."

Needless to say there was much celebration, as we tried to figure out how to quarter and dress our first Elk from memories of the "gutless method" videos we had watched the month before. Took about 4 hours, but we didn't care. That year we learned how amazing Elk meat tastes, and I learned that the meat and not the antlers are the true "trophy." That is not to say that we do not regret passing on that cow and holding out for the Herd Bull 30 seconds later. But a decision had been made, and my Brother stuck to it.

I am happy to report, that 4 years later, my Brother did get a 6x6 Bull with his bow, maybe not quite as big, but still a dandy - so we are making progress.


Upon reflection, our Strategy of sitting a trail or pass was sound. Maybe not the most exciting way to hunt Elk, but effective. We did not yet have the skill or confidence for more aggressive calling. I doubt my few cows calls did a darn thing - the Elk were just using their usual escape route , and we were lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time. At least we were smart enough to re-position when the first cows showed us their preferred route. The shot was executed to perfection, but to this day I can't figure why he let the first cow pass - I think he just was not mentally prepared to kill an Elk that quickly.

Don't be shy - post up those great stories! So we can all learn from your success.

Here is a pic of my Brother with his Cow Elk and our Shed

[MidMoElkNut]

I think this will be a great thread as I am a rookie when it comes to elk hunting and I believe it will help me a lot! This fall will be my fifth season and I haven't brought home an elk yet but I still love elk hunting!!

CurlyTail, you mentioned about setting up in a saddle... I was curious to why you picked that spot? What told you to sit there? Was it all woods or a field?

I haven't had much luck finding a spot I like and seeing animals while just sitting there but have had luck with calling/ running and gunning although I'm not that great using calls. If the elk aren't vocal it makes it hard for me to hunt!

Any advice or more details on deciding on a good spot to sit would be greatly appreciated!!!

[CurlyTail]

This saddle is just a natural pinch point. It is a low spot on a prominent ridge between two prime valleys. I have found that Elk are no different than humans when climbing a ridge - we always head for the low spot to avoid as much elevation gain as possible. I have also observed that Elk do not go straight up a slope, they always traverse a steep slope and usually it is the path of least resistance. They do not waste energy. In subsequent years, we have put trail cams on this spot, and we see traffic across the pass about every other day.

[ElkNut1]

The morning started out innocent enough! We were heading out 45min before light to a pre-determined spot we had been into elk 2 days earlier. It was just my Son & I. We had covered about 1 1/2 mile into the Idaho woods when we heard a bugle just north of us 400ys+ out. We had not called at all to this point so this ole boy had sounded off on his own, he bugled several more times but we could tell he was in hot pursuit of something, such as a herd of elk with a possible hot cow. We followed his bugles the best we could but he was moving fast!! At this point we could not see him.

You must appreciate the country we hunt! It's steep in many areas & very rugged. There are tons of downfalls in it from years of burns. Alder/Chaparral type brush grows rampant in every direction & is in the 7' to 15' high stages, it's nearly impossible to see over or get through it; you must find seams here & there & do your best to maintain a reasonable direction. In this case we were trying to follow this bull’s bugle as we felt he would lead us to the real herd. You will cover 3 times the distance as needed because of this terrain & it's steep as all get out in many places, including where he was taking us!

We are in pursuit of this bull but his bugles are becoming faint as he's moving much quicker than we can follow, we know the area well as we've taken roughly 25 elk off this mountain range over the years. After about 45min of following & weaving our way straight up this miserable spot we hear a bugle above us aprox 1/4 mile away, we are now more excited as it sounds as though we are finally closing the distance, meaning this bull is finally where he wants to be or bed. We now hear a 2nd bull to our left; he's 500yds off & a bit below us in a downfall hell. Almost un-approachable! We know his spot well & hate it!! (grin) He's no doubt a very good herd bull by his sounds. We do have a stroke of luck as these 2 are keeping each other entertained vocally.

We still have done no calling to give away our presence. We now close the distance to the bull above us, he's straight above us on the other side of an alder thicket, he's 55yds out & we can't see a thing. There's a small opening above us & the bull is slightly right of it in the cover, he has now bugled aprox 8 times as we stand there with my Son up front as this is going to be his opportunity. Well, these 2 bulls go back & forth for 10 minutes & just when we think this bull just above us may step into the opening he retreats back, he does it time & again, the wind is in our face so no issues there. The bull has now moved further away to our right & now is a good 80-90yds away; I don't like this at all. I have my Son get down the mtn another 40yds or so from where we came up, there's a bit of an opening there. I'm going to try & call this bull over his way with some very soft cow calls & then retreat as I'm doing this in hopes this bull will follow or want to catch up with this cow. I have seen no real indication that this is a herd bull we're dealing with so decide not to scream in his face to get him to "react" although I'm puzzled if he's not why his distance is so great from the bull to our left? I'm soon to find out!

My Son sets up & I get behind him 30yds or so & give a few soft calls, nothing, the bull does not bugle the calls! I try again & get very little response, just a slight chuckle from him. I move away & pick up the volume a bit & he shows more interest. About 4-5 minutes have passed & I slowly have picked up the excitement level some, he's starting to build in his excitement as well. I don't feel from my position that he's getting any closer but yet seems further away & going over this steep brushed out mtn. He's vocal enough to give my Son a good position & I'm hoping he's slipping in? After 10 minutes of this cat & mouse I decide to go back where I left my Son which is a good 100yds away now & he's not there?I look ahead & all around & see nothing, where the heck did he go? The bull is in front of me still a good 80yds out in this thick cover & is now giving short screams for this cow to come on over, NOW!

All I can think of is my Son must have tried to shimmy his way through the thicket above where the bull started out to close the distance & get a shot at him as he was very vocal to get a good fix on him. But the bull is now 50yds below this thicket & slightly over a small knoll on the mtn. He now seems like he's getting farther away from his last bugle & chuckles. I feel he's getting nervous because this cow hasn't shown up & I decide I HAVE to get aggressive with him or he's gone! I still can't locate my Son & feel he's stuck in the thicket above & can't get to the bull in fear of making too much noise?

So I take it upon myself while still 80yds out (mind you this is all taking place in my mind in a matter of seconds) from this bull to get very whiny & loud using sounds very similar to a gathering or pleading sound on mid to high volume & very pitchy, I do this along with some stomping & running partially through the lower brush to create a visual in this bulls mind that this cow is now on her way & wants him! I'm now really calling away loudly & stomping my way to him making sure to keep good cover between us, I see a fir tree 15' high with green branches growing all the way to the ground & head for that feeling the bull is only 20 yds on the other side of it. I get 25yds from the tree & give my last sounds & nock a SnufferSS tipped arrow on my longbow & hurry quietly to this tree really expecting to see this bull, I get there & see nothing but am staring intently in the direction where I last heard him. ---- Mind you all the while I'm wondering where in the heck my Son is.

Well I stare a few more seconds as I am motionless & see antlers through some timber & ears & eyes staring right at me 30yds out, I'm staring through the branches, I know he saw the movement but I feel he thinks it's the cow he's looking for so we have a 4-5 minute stare down all the while I'm holding my longbow in the ready position & my arm is starting to burn as I cannot lower the bow or move a muscle, he screams a good 1/2 doz times & the excitement level is off the charts, he is below me about 25' in elevation. After the stare down he feels all is OK, whew! He pops up on the knoll now 20yds out & stares for a few more seconds, I'm now shaking like a leaf in the wind from exhaustion & excitement that this might just happen, but where the heck is my son Paul II? The bull a 6-point is now 100% broadside & wouldn't you know it there's a dead branch running across his side & is covering a portion of his vitals. It would be a slam dunk shot with a compound at that distance but too much trajectory involved to risk with a longbow & screw up the shot! I wait patiently not moving a muscle!

The bull now turns & walks a few yards to an aspen tree & starts raking it with just his browtines. His rear is facing me, in front of me & slightly to my right about 2' away is a 12" high slab of granite stone, I feel I need to get on that slab while he's raking to get elevation for the shot & be above that darned branch. I slowly move & up I go hoping he doesn't spot my movement, he doesn't! I'm in position now still shaking of course!! (grin) If he stops raking & turns left I have no shot, too much cover, I need him to go back where he came from. The odds are in my favor he'll do this. This bull is raking to display for this unseen cow & trying to impress her, in an effort to show what he's got to offer. The bull turns right, sweet, 18yds out! He takes 2 slow steps to my right & I draw anchor & release, I see the arrow fly right into his heart, I immediately felt he wouldn't travel far.

I turn around to go find my Son & he's standing right there next to me, I'm in shock as I don't understand how he could've been there so quick?

So here's how my Son saw it all unfold! -----------------

He says he had crept up to a tree not 15yds away but above me where I went to the tree with branches growing to the ground, he was there watching the bull 30yds out waiting for him to step up out of the cover & come towards my calling. That's when this crazy old man, (me) went running by him screaming those cow sounds & stomping away kicking the underbrush. My Son said he was waving his arms at me frantically & hissing at me to stop because the bull was just right there, he just knew I was going to blow the whole thing!!!!!! I went by my son only 10 yds away, he said since I didn't notice him waving so he picked up a good sized rock to throw in my direction to get my attention to STOP!!! He says the rock hit me in the right leg & I never slowed for a second!! He said that crazy ElkNut just kept on going to the tree like a mad man on a mission. LOL!!!!!! I guess I was so focused I saw & felt nothing at all. The first thing my Son said was "nice shot"--2ndly he said that's the 1st time my caller has run by me to kill the bull, we both laughed but I was actually still in shock that I shot that bull right out from under him, actually I felt terrible about it. I had no clue where he was!!!!

My Son did say that when the bull was raking the aspen tree that if he'd turned left where I had no shot that it would've given him the perfect shot. Go Figure!!!! Gotta love elk hunting, especially with your son or daughter! (grin)

ElkNut1

[DaleL]

Great story. Amazing how exciting it can get and be caught up without even seeing your son.

[twinkieman]

This story is about a bull I killed in 2008, prior to any of the "Elknut " knowledge I have learned from the dvd's, playbook, and Paul. Back in those days, I didn't carry a camera, and cell phones weren't what they are today.
This was the second season in the area I hunt now, the evening before, I was way up high, glassing into a huge canyon, I hadn't been into before. While glassing, I spotted a herd of elk, 10 cows, one bull, and he was definitely the herd bull. Seven points on each side, not a ton of mass, but a really good bull. Three hours before daylight found me and my headlamp hiking several miles into the canyon I spotted elk in the night before. As the darkness began to turn into the early moments of daylight, I decided it was much to noisy to hear well, near the water that was now flowing. I climbed up a sage covered ridge, and before cresting the top, just stood and listened. After listening for 10 or so minutes, and hearing absolutely nothing, I pulled out my bugle and gave a long, high pitched whistle. I immediately received a response, followed by 3 or four hard grunts. Two things that I know now, that I didn't know then.#1, the bugle I gave was actually a location bugle, although at the time I wasn't aware that's what I was doing. #2 the bull was telling me to stay away .

I used the terrain to my advantage, the morning thermals were drifting downhill, so I stayed below them, moved into about a 100 yds, and began cow calling with a mouth diaphragm. I wanted to be able to see what was going on, so I called just below the crest of a rise, with just my head in line of sight. The bull answered, and much to my surprise, just stayed with his cows. All the videos I had watched, after a series of cow calls the bulls just ran in to get shot! So un-elk educated me just kept up with my mewing, and I sadly watched as the elk herd drifted off into the timber. I climbed a little higher, tried to glass them up, but could not see into the timber, where they were at now.
I moved down, crossed the creek, and started climbing the drainage on the other side. Once again, I pulled out my bugle, threw out that high pitched whistle, and once again, got back that bugle with hard grunts! It sounded like they were a couple hundred yards away, but as I got close to the area I expected to the elk to be, I could hear cows mewing, but I hadn't been able to get any closer. There was great cover in the timber, so I just kept moving in, got in as close as I dared, and started cow calling again. Once again, the bull bugled at me, I could hear elk, kept up my mewing( no excitement in my calling at all, looking back on it), and once again they drifted away. Now the thermals were beginning to switch uphill, so I climbed, kept going in the direction I believed they had gone, and then I came on an opening in the timber, started glassing, and less than 100 yds away, there were my elk! I didn't feel I could move any closer, had the wind right, So I kneeled down, knocked an arrow, and thought about what I was going to do. Twice I had moved in tight, cow called, but no elk came to my calls. I made a decision right then, that since the bull had answered my high pitched whistle, and would bugle back to my cow calls, I was going to do both, and I had read that raking sometimes would pull in call shy bulls. Everything I had read, up to this point was that when elk hunters bugled at bulls, the bulls would become call shy, gather their cows and just leave. I had had some experience, and had already killed 3 bulls up to this point, but always with cow calls, and Yes, I will admit it, my best bull at the time, I squeaked in with a Hootchie Mama . But here was a contradiction in everything I had read and learned, This bull responded to my bugles.
So my thoughts at the time were this, cow calls ain't cutting it, I've nothing to lose, I have to try something different. I then mewed, put my bugle to my lips, and tried to make a wimpy sounding bull. I cow called again, wimpy bull bugle again, took a stick and raked the tree next to me. There was a small draw in front of me, and all of a sudden, this tree on the other side started shaking back and forth, there was no wind, and I thought WTH? That's about the time I spotted the antlers, and the limbs on the tree were starting to disappear. I remember thinking, bugle again and let's see what happens. So once again I gave that wimpy bugle, he stopped beating the crap out of the poor defenseless tree, and came across the top of the small ravine, went behind a tree at 10 yds, I drew, as his vitals cleared the tree, I shot!
I would like to tell you that I made the perfect shot, but he was moving, and my shot was too far back, he wheeled, I started cow calling, and he crashed through the timber, then he got to the small meadow, and I once again could see him. I could see blood, and then he just laid down in the middle of the herd. I snuck in closer,, hidden well behind a log, and just waited. After around thirty minutes, the herd began to leave, he got up with them, and left the meadow and his bed. I decided to wait, then in came the clouds, then it lightly began to rain. I immediately took up the trail, and the blood on the ground was easy to follow.
First we went across and open sage face, into dark timber, out the other side into a shale covered slope, still no problem, but as I trailed he continued to climb, and then in the trail was my broken off arrow, I was convinced it wouldn't be long now, and then it started to snow, big quarter size flakes, and no more blood. I searched in a grid pattern, until darkness came, and I did all I could that day to find him, except for one thing, I will cover later. The following morning, I was once again searching, there was still snow on the ground, and I did not find the bull I knew I had killed, dejected, that evening I once again returned to camp.
I punched my tag, and when I returned to camp that evening, the others, whom I was hunting with had returned from a three day bivy hunt. The next day, accompanied by, my friend Wayne, we once again searched daylight to dark, still no bull. That night I told them for the next few days I was going to call for each of them, wait a few days for the birds to start doing their thing on the carcass, and then go and find my bull, I was convinced that the meat was now spoiled.
Three days later, Wayne and I were high on a ridge, I called in a spike bull for Wayne, he shot over the bull. Instead of being bummed out, or taking pity on himself, Wayne said that the experience alone was all he needed. Then he said," Let's go find your bull. Four hours later we were once again in the area I had lost the trail of my bull. We searched and searched again, then met up to eat a Cliff bar, and Wayne pointed up to this dead snag 4 or 5 hundred yards above us. He said," There are some ravens in that snag way up there, they have been there since we got here, as steep as that ridge is no way a hurt bull could go up there, is there?" I told him that's the only place we haven't looked, but it's so steep, I'll go up alone. Wayne wouldn't hear of it, and so we began the climb. 30 minutes later, we got onto that bench, just below the ridgeline, and at the base of that snag, there was my bull. Bears, and coyotes had done a number on him, the cape was useless, so we cut off the antlers, and took him back to camp with us.
While I am hugely disappointed, that the meat went to waste, I am proud of what I did to punch my tag, recover what I could and learn from the mistakes I made. Now years later, an avid believer in the information learned from the Elknut stuff, I also reflect on what I accidently did right.
1. Location bugles are non-threatening, and do not run off elk.
2.I didn't just stick with cow calls, twice it failed, I had to do something different, no matter how whacky I thought it was at the time I did it.
3.The calling sequence I made to get me a shot, unknowingly, at the time, was actually Threat Level #1
Mistakes learned from:
1.NEVER call from where elk can see where the sound is coming from.
2.Knowing what I know now, I would have challenged this bull
3. I don't shoot at moving elk now, I always stop them now, at the time I had no idea what a nervous grunt was
4. Mortally wounded elk can and will go straight uphill, had I known this, and climbed the only place I didn't search on the day I shot him, I likely would have recovered him, and not let the meat be only good for scavengers.
If just one of you, who takes the time to have read this, is able to recover an elk, by looking up, and going where you didn't believe he could go, that would really make my day. All that read this, and aren't yet using Elknut's methods, that is your loss. Before I learned, I took a bull every 2 or three years, now I routinely call in 10 or more bulls on public ground, each and every season, for myself, and those I hunt with. Buy what Elknut is selling, learn it , use it, and if you put in the work, you WILL call in more bulls!

[CurlyTail]

Thanks guys for taking the time to share these awesome stories. This is exactly what I was looking for!

We also wounded, and did not recover a nice Bull this past season. What a terrible feeling. It is hard to admit on a public forum. I have yet to use a Nervous Grunt to stop a Bull - i am still mastering a "soft" one, as my best ones are quite loud. My shooter did not have a diaphram in his mouth (oops!), and things happened so quickly that he did not get drawn at the best moment. It is hard to explain how mentally focused you must be to draw at the right moment, stop the Bull, and execute the shot. So focused that maybe you would not even notice you hunting buddy waving at you or a thrown rock hitting your leg! (grin)

I read an article by Randy Ulmer on shot selection, and he made some great comments about stopping a Bull. He recommended stopping most Bulls most of the time. But if you are in dense cover, and have narrow shooting lanes, you may be better off letting the Bull continue to walk and timing your shot as your chances of stopping the Bull in the exact small shooting lane are not good. Obviously, the closer the better, and practicing for such a shot was recommended. I would consider that an "expert" move, and I plan on stopping my Bull this September or not shooting.

It is harder than you think, to make any noise, much less a decent cow call or Nervous Grunt, when a Bull Elk is less than 30 yards from you. You naturally, don't want any attention focused on your location, and the adrenaline is off the charts. You need to practice with a diaphragm in your mouth when target shooting. Calling before you pull the trigger should become part of your routine.

[ElkNut1]

Marc, enjoyed your story, there are times we all wish we could have a mulligan, I truly appreciate your perseverance in finding your bull, that says a lot about your character sir!

Curlytail, yes stopping a bull is something we try to do when bulls are moving/walking too quick. Stopping elk in a shooting lane in tight cover or just stopping them for the shot should be done with a loud abrupt sound not a soft one. Whether using a mew or nervous grunt, hammer it abruptly, it will lock them up! Practice the sound you intend to use with your voice & diaphragm well before your elk hunts so you have the confidence to use it at crunch time!

ElkNut1

[twinkieman]

Curlytail, your popping grunt does not have to be perfect! The elk know what the sound is, and it stops them dead in their tracks. Another forum member, and I won't mention his name, has made some popping grunts that sounded just awful, but it stops the bull everytime. I called in a bull for him 3 seasons ago, and when he made the nervous grunt, I had to stop myself from laughing out loud, it worked though. He actually didn't get off a shot, and the bull started moving away, followed by that hilarious popping grunt again, and the bull locked up, and this time he made the shot. He uses just his voice. When I moved up to meet with him, I asked him WTH was that, his reply was it worked didn't it! I have witnessed it many times.
I use a mouth reed for mine, and I end every practice session, nervous grunting as I draw, and then making the shot. I don't have to think about it in the field, it is now just a part of my shot.

[CurlyTail]

Loud, abrupt, and less than perfect - I can do that!

[Indian Summer]

I have a couple. Ok a few. Alright a pile of them but I'll tell you one that doesn't seem to have lots of details or anything. But then again it does.

My first bull. I had come up empty on a guided bowhunt. Then again on a guided gun hunt. So it was time for a DIY hunt. I have a friend up near Noxon Montana, home of the Clip-Shot, who actually wasn't a hunter at all. He would have been good at the treestand method because he could spend hours on a bar stool without moving. So we told him we were coming up and to see if he could find us a promising spot.

The only real hope was that he would cross paths with some local or something. THAT is the moral of this story. When we got there he handed us a bar napkin. He said he asked some guy who was too old (and drunk) to even think about walking up mountains anymore if he knew any places he might find an elk or two. The guy pointed him west on the road, told him where the turn off was, and said here's a little map. He drew this road that went on forever switchback it's way up the hill. It was an old gated road from a mining claim. Eventually after about 12 miles it was getting late and we decided that it was time to throw up out little tent and call it a day. We didn't really even know how far we had to go to get to the top. We were total greenhorns. His map made it look like a short little hike which couldn't be further from the truth! But once the road topped out it got a little more detailed. The slope on the opposite side of the ridge was fairly steep. By the looks of the napkin he was suggesting that the slope turned into a cliff at some point. So the next morning, day 1 of the Montana gun season we woke up and headed to the top. We followed the spine of the ridge ad sure enough it got steeper and cliffed out. On the map at the base of the cliffy spot the old dude drew a little stick figure of a bull. I swear to you when I looked over that hill the freaking thing was standing right where he drew it.

Not so fast though. I had a 7mm Remington magnum and was really good at shooting it. The bull was feeding uphill and slightly away from me but neither him or his cows even blinked at the first shot. or the second or third. I had a great rest and you know how it feels when you know you've made the perfect shot. So pretty quick I realized that they were quite a bit further away than I estimated. I took off to my left along the ridge and, not knowing the country at all, found a place where I could drop down over the top. By pure luck I ended up on a small secondary finger that went the way I was heading so I followed that. Then there was another finger that branched out to the right which also headed my way so I stayed on that. After I got down there a ways I stopped to have a look. Low and behold there is a single file line of elk walking slowly in my direction. I had managed to circle completely around them and they were going from feed to bed. By now they surely knew something was up as my brother had taken 2 shots while I was on my way over. 1 cow, 2 cows, 3,4,5,6 cows... bull! They were downhill from me at about 125 yards and I dropped him in his tracks. We won't talk about the pack out.

Flashback to 2012 I started making maps for people and although they don't have stick figures of bulls on them I have had many people ask me "How the hell did you know there would be a bull standing by that dead white log" or something like that. I'd been pointing out the money spots to my clients both guided and unguided for years. So if you have the opportunity and really want some info on a specific area you might consider actually going there. It might sound like a far fetched idea but think about it: Would you help out a guy sitting next to you at a bar or someone from who knows where on the internet. Lots of the people you would hope to run into don't even have a computer or the internet. But before you put on your hiking shoes make a few stops. The post office, the grocery store, the library, the feed store, the taxidermist, the meat processor and yes... maybe even the bar. It might be worth a thousand hours of internet scouting. Make sure you take a ballpoint pen with you too.

[WapitiTalk1]

Great hunt stories guys, keep em coming! Joe, I've perched upon those old wooden stools in the Noxon establishments a few times myself

[Swede]

I have this story and others in the tree stand book, but it is my favorite. This is a little different, but it is the same hunt with the same bull.
The Friday evening before the opening of archery season, I bedded down in the back of my pickup and gazed at the stars, and was thinking about the day that was just ahead. I was in an area I had seen elk on several occasions. I had put up a tree stand at the head of a stream that was out the closed road where the pickup was now parked at the entrance. As I lay there with my eyes open gazing upwards, I heard this bull bugle a couple of hundred yards away. He went quiet in a little while and I fell asleep.
The next morning I hurried to my stand. On the way I saw a herd of elk cross the road out ahead. I did not pursue them but instead went to the stand. It was a home made affair that had no seat, so I sat on the deck. I sat there about an hour and got bored. What am I doing here I thought as I prepared to climb down. I went out calling in the direction I watched the elk travel. That weekend was a bust. From what I remember, there were only a couple of brief elk encounters for two long days of hunting. Sunday afternoon late it occurred to me that I never went where I heard the bull bugling the evening before the season opened, so I drove down a road that I thought should take me to the junction of a side road that would lead back into that area.
I was right, but only had a couple of hours of light left before I needed to go home and get ready for a regular work week. I started walking out that closed road. There was little fresh sign at first so I was not optimistic. About 20 minutes up that road I started seeing sign and in a little time I came to a spot that looked like a dug out pond above the road. I walked up to that spot and sure enough it was a stock watering development. There were no cattle in the area, but there was a trail beat to dust leading to that little pond. I walked up the trail a little ways and saw large fresh elk tracks and quite a few fresh rubs. Eureka! This is it. I recognized there was a bull coming in to that water hole on a regular basis, and if I was right it was the one that I had heard a couple of evenings earlier. I waited in a bush until dark, then slipped out of there. I was determined to come back and place my home made stand in a tree nearby.
The next Friday my son and I went back, and we took down the stand from where it was hanging and put it up a tree at the new site. We built a ladder and hung the stand up the tree about 18-20 feet. Luke wondered if we had left too much scent or made too much noise. I did not think so and we determined he would take the first shift up the tree the following morning.
Saturday dawned clear and cool. Luke climbed up the tree and I hiked off into a different area in search of elk. When we met up for lunch at the truck I had seen nothing, but he told me of a great five point bull that had come close, but went off somewhere without coming in. I did not think too much about it, but felt bad he did not have a shot opportunity. But as agree that afternoon I sat in the tree stand. Luke decided to sit at a water hole about 80 yards away. It was warm and I read a car magazine then became drowsy.
All of a sudden at 5:50 PM I looked up, and there he was. Silent as a ghost walking on cotton balls, the bull was slowly coming down the trail in front of me. I still remember every movement I made to stand up, take my bow off a limb stub and to nock an arrow. I knew nothing of tree stand hunting at the time, but was fortunate to be in a great place and to have a lot of time. Finally the bull came around a willow patch and walked down to the pond right in front of me. As he bent his head to get a drink I came to full draw, took careful aim and squeezed the trigger on my release. Instantly the arrow was deep through the bull's lungs. He exploded as he ran across the pond and down the hill.
Within a minute, as I was still standing looking; there was Luke. He was looking up at me, gesturing "what happened"? I got down and he said he heard all of the racket and saw this bull blow by him at full throttle. He thought I must have taken a fall out of the stand. I explained that the bull had my arrow in him. We waited awhile and started to trail the bull. I stayed on the road and just looked over the side. Within about 150 yards I saw my 5 point prize bull piled up in the open timber. My first tree stand bull was there to claim.

[WapitiTalk1]

September 1st, 1990 (if memory serves) found me on day one of a ten day hunt in Washington State with an Army buddy I met at a big game seminar on Fort Lewis in early August. Jason talked to me after the seminar, seemed very interested in elk hunting (had never been before) so I invited him along on my pending hunt. That early September morning, we had put in some serious trail time in a wilderness area with zero action. After getting back to the truck and driving to a spot not far off a main road, we sat on a couple of logs off to the side of a little spur road to have a late lunch, do a bit of afternoon map work, and talk about where we would hunt that evening (if I remember correctly, I was gonna take him on another trail system to see if we could locate some critters). It was probably around 4:30 – 5:00 PM and a good 80 degrees on that western exposure flat we sat on! A large clear cut was below us and one above between where we sat and the main gravel road, with some timber strips here and there. I figured it was a good time/place to have Jason practice some calling as we sat in the early fall sun, so, I had Jason head over the bank about 30 yards, and do a call or two on his internal reed bugle he’d picked up a week or so before we left to go hunting. Told him I’d answer his call back and for him to try to reproduce it. OK, the stage is set for this story. Jason went over the bank, squawked a bugle out on his tube and I responded with a loud, high, three note locator. About the time Jason responded, I thought I heard a high note above me towards the main road, perhaps 300 yards. I listened for a minute or so and then screamed out another bugle with some chuckles at the end. Eeeeeeyaaaaaaeeeeee, ah, ah, ah, ah. Yep, bugle with chuckles way above me and pretty close to the main road! I ran to where Jason was and told him to grab his gear “there’s a bull answering above us”. Jason in his Rhode Island accent responded with “no way RJ, I didn’t hear anything”. Told him I wasn’t kidding and we grabbed our gear and blasted up towards where I thought I’d heard the bull. After covering a good 150 yards, I checked the thermals and set Jason up downwind from me in the direction I felt the bull may come in. Jason was set up with good cover and by some very pronounced game trails. Me? Well, I was set up just into a meadowish opening with a few fir saplings to my rear. What happens next is the classic “are you kidding me?”! I threw out two whiny cow calls followed immediately by a two note bugle with some voice mixed in. The little 4X5 Roosey came off his herd (probably a SAT bull) 150 yards or so above us, bugled no less than 6 or 7 times on the run trying to locate me, crashed by and off to the side of Jason, flanked me, spun around and came trotting directly at me in the open, completely disregarding the thermals. Umm, crap… this bull is gonna run me over! I stopped him with a quick movement on my part when he was no more than 15 yards from me. He put on the brakes so fast when he stopped (literally skidded on his front tires), that it blasted dirt, dust, and bark in the air straight at me. As soon as he stopped, I floated my pin on his shirt pocket and released the old GGII, 2219 (yep, I was shooting fenceposts back then) and saw it bury into his chest but seemingly low. As he spun, I voiced barked (popping grunt) and he stopped broadside for just a few seconds allowing me to put another arrow in him broadside at a bit over 30 yards (I hit a bit high on that shot). We tracked him well into the night and returned at daylight in the morning to find him still alive. A quick arrow put him down for good. Moral of the story? Always be ready when you call as you never know what’s around, never be surprised at what direction a bull may come in from, do “not” set up (caller or shooter) in an open area, and lastly.. put a second arrow in an elk if you have an opportunity. I can't find the field pic of the elk but here's a snap after I returned home with my daughter posing with the little Roosey.

4X5Roosey.png (136.08 KiB) Viewed 10201 times

[Elkhunttoo]

So the count down was done, sept 20th was here. I got to the mountain at about 3:30 to meet my dad and brother. We have one tree stand that we set up at the end of July and I picked to sit it that night because my brother had sat it the night before. I was in the stand for about 2 1/2 hours and there was only about an hour of day light left. I haven't heard anything and the wallow didn't look like it had any action in a few days. I did one last look around and decided where it was the first night I wanted to look around and go find some elk instead of sitting on my stand. BAD MOVE. I tide my bow onto the string and dropped it down the tree. I turned and made it out of my stand and onto my first step when I went eye to eye with a rag horn bull at about 15 yards. OPPS!!! Here I am, stuck hanging to the side of a tree, bow on the ground, elk standing there confused looking at the biggest squirrel he's ever seen. After about a minute of feeling STUPID I decided hanging there watching him walk off would just suck and I had to at least try. I slowly made it back into the stand without him moving. HALF THE GOAL ACOMPLISHED. Then grabbing the string I started to pull my bow up. As soon as I grabbed my bow he turned and went into the trees. I knocked an arrow and watched legs move through the trees. I saw right where he was going to come out. 50 yards away he stepped out of the trees and was met with a cow call. He stopped, froze and then, "TWING." As soon as I let go of my arrow I knew it was back a little. I watched that arrow take forever and I swear it was moving back and forth, never going to get there, AND THEN SMACK. Dead center of that bull, he whirled, I cow called, and called, and called. I only had about 45 min until dark so I got out of my stand and went over to the spot he was standing. Because of the shot being back I knew I needed to give him a couple hours. I waited about 25 min and then followed the trail for about 100 yards (just in case ) and marked the spot. I went back to camp told my dad and brother the story. The temp that night was 30 degrees at ten o clock so it was nice and cold. After a sleepless night daylight found us on the trail and moving. The blood was good for the first 300 yards or so and then patchy. We found him about 2 hours after day light. After everything I finally got to celebrate my 3 hour hunt and my little four point rag horn.

[cohunter]

Great story, Elkhuntoo! Reminds me of the times I've fished all day with nothing and then get a bird's nest in my reel on a cast and the bait gets hammered! Sometimes it just feels like the best hunting tactic is to be totally unprepared and you'll see them... I don't think that works out too often though! I've always thought an elk sighting was imminent any time I had to use the bushes... never has happened that way for me though.

[Elkhunttoo]

My cousin watched a nice bull walk right by his stand a few years back while he was in the bushes...he said there was nothing he could do about it herd bull with cows

[Elkduds]

In about 1996 I filled a cow tag w my pants around my ankles. 80 yard rifle shot, head on. Never bled a drop, heard her fall after a 100 yard dash. That is one reason why I dislike the frontal shot, if the entry wound doesn't bleed and you don't get an exit, you could lose the animal. Moral of story: Keep your weapon handy @ ALL times.

[Lefty]

In about 1996 I filled a cow tag w my pants around my ankles. 80 yard rifle shot, head on. Never bled a drop, heard her fall after a 100 yard dash. That is one reason why I dislike the frontal shot, if the entry wound doesn't bleed and you don't get an exit, you could lose the animal. Moral of story: Keep your weapon handy @ ALL times.

I wonder how many others were doing their business and killed game.

Of the frontal shots Ive killed deer antelope and elk, many of those situations there was a quick opportunity for a second shot I can only think of one time where a frontal shot disappeared from sight before being found dead. 90 yards from the secound shot,.. one fleck of blood on a rock

[Dr. Rx]

"Location bugles are non-threatening, and do not run off elk.
2.I didn't just stick with cow calls, twice it failed, I had to do something different, no matter how whacky I thought it was at the time I did it.
3.The calling sequence I made to get me a shot, unknowingly, at the time, was actually Threat Level #1
Mistakes learned from:
1.NEVER call from where elk can see where the sound is coming from.
2.Knowing what I know now, I would have challenged this bull
3. I don't shoot at moving elk now, I always stop them now, at the time I had no idea what a nervous grunt was
4. Mortally wounded elk can and will go straight uphill, had I known this, and climbed the only place I didn't search on the day I shot him, I likely would have recovered him, and not let the meat be only good for scavengers.
If just one of you, who takes the time to have read this, is able to recover an elk, by looking up, and going where you didn't believe he could go, that would really make my day. All that read this, and aren't yet using Elknut's methods, that is your loss. Before I learned, I took a bull every 2 or three years, now I routinely call in 10 or more bulls on public ground, each and every season, for myself, and those I hunt with. Buy what Elknut is selling, learn it , use it, and if you put in the work, you WILL call in more bulls!"
twinkieman

That is awesome Marc!

Kris

[BMGinthePNW]

I will preface this with saying I had this written out in full yesterday, went to attach a pic and hit post and it said i wasn't logged in, not sure why but I will give it another shot.

This is my story from 2014.

Season: Western WA early archery
Tag: General OTC
Land: Public
Hunt Style: Solo DIY (buddy was in the area but not with me)

The day began later than usual in regards to my departure from camp. I had arrived the day before bombing out of work ASAP and hunted hard while there was still light out, I needed some extra z's apparently. With packs on I looked at my hunting partner and said "Let's go kill a bull", we nodded in unison and went our separate ways with plans to meet for lunch midday. I hit the road I planned to ascend. It was drivable for a short distance but quickly became choked out by blow downs and over growth. I had finally reached my dive in spot and proceeded into the timber. It was a blue bird day with not a cloud in the sky. The morning rays of the sun were working their way through the upper canopy which created a picturesque scene in the the elk woods. Wind was not an issue this morning as there was barely a breeze. Temps began to rise quickly as I maneuvered through the forest. My plan was to hunt through the timber and reach a high meadow that seemed promising and looked very "elky". As I moved along I would cow call, stop and listen, give off the occasional locator, stop and listen, repeat, repeat, repeat. Responses were null and void so far. As I crested a small rise in the terrain I decided to rip off another locator bugle. No sooner had I taken the tube away from my mouth did I get a response. I thought to myself that there is no way that could be another hunter. First I had seen no other boot tracks leading up the road and second it seemed too coincidental that it happened that soon. To boot my buddy was not close enough to hear me calling. It must be a bull! I worked cautiously but aggressively towards the bugle I heard. I cow called a little bit to try and pique his interest as I moved forward and also let out a small chuckle. He replied again to this and I could tell we were converging. I made it to an area that provided good shooting lanes to my front and left. The right was concerning as it was blocked by a wall of vine maple but did open up a ways past it. Best I could do I said. The bull ripped off another bugle this time on his own accord and I cut him off with a bugle of my own. It was game time!

I posted myself next to a large Doug Fir trunk, knocked an arrow and clipped on my release. Reed in mouth I scoured the vine maple and saplings that lay in front of me 20-30 yards and tried to pick out any sign of the elk. Hearing before seeing was the case this time as I picked up with unmistakable sound of heavy hooves coming my way. This was followed by heavy panting and branches snapping. The bull materialized out the vine maples to my right. He had a beautiful late summer coat that was short and clean. His rack proved to be enough to make him legal in the unit I was in and I tired my best not to look at it again to mitigate the effects of "bull fever". He continued on his path to my right (remember this was the least opportune area for a shooting lane). Each step was deliberate and he was not aware of my presence whatsoever. Luck was on my side as he made a hard turn to my left, assuming he was headed towards the cow sounds I had made earlier. He went behind a small sapling which gave me an opportunity to come to full draw. I placed my top pin behind his front shoulder and followed him as he moved forward collecting myself for execution of the shoot. I cow called to try and stop him but it was apparently too quiet, he wasn't phased at all. I called again this time with more fervor and he stopped immediately. I exhaled and loosed my arrow. THWACK! The sound of my arrow embedding into him rang out from 12 yards away. He tore out of there as fast as an Indy Car (at least that is what it seemed like). I cow called and bugled to try and slow/calm him down and kept visual as long as the forest allowed.

I remained frozen next to the tree trunk, in shock, nervous, excited and proud. What the hell just happened! I walked forward and found my arrow, it was a clean pass through. I gave it the once over and placed it back into my quiver. I waited about 35-40 minutes before radioing my buddy. "I just shot a bull" I said and his sense of excitement could be felt through the Garmin. He said he was on his way and that I needed to get my $hi! together and quit pussyfooting around and go find him LOL. I gave it a little more time and began the track job. I immediately found his digs in the dry earth and looked for signs of blood. There was nothing, only tracks. Okay I can deal with this I told myself. I tracked for roughly 60ish yards at times getting strayed but rebounding and and getting on them again. I got to a point where the hoof prints were gone and I had to make a choice. Go left or right. Right was the path of least resistance, if I was injured I would go that way, so I did. I continued to look at the ground and scan the timber in front of me to try and pick out any sign of a downed elk. 30 yards in front of me there he lay.

As I approached him a massive sense of relief swept over me. A 6x6, public land, Western WA beast (at least a beast in my book, grin) lay on the ground. I had won the battle this day. I absorbed the moment as much as I could. Soon after, my buddy arrived, high fives and fanny slaps commenced. I recounted the events and he was so pumped for me he could barely stand still. We took pictures and began the task of breaking him down, loading up heavy packs and hiking back to camp. It is a day I will never forget.

So what did I learn? This was my first archery kill and only my second year of carrying around said tackle. I was very proud of my self for accomplishing a difficult task. Bottom line is don't give up. Be confident in your skills, conditioning, calling and hunting knowledge. Use the resources available and and store that in your memory bank. The hours of scouting, practicing, planning and time away from home pay off. Be proud of what you accomplish but remain humble. I had taken elk prior to this with my smokepole but this was by far the most intense situation I had been in. I hope others that read this can appreciate the effort it takes and can have a mental picture of what transpired. Those that are in the infancy stages of elk hunting can perhaps use this as motivation. I am no expert elk slayer, far from it. I was able to execute when the time called and really didn't screw anything up, thank goodness!

[ElkNut1]

BmGin, great story! I really enjoyed your clean calm composure, very nice sir & congrats on a great bull!

ElkNut1

[saddlesore]

I can't type that much.It would take me all day to relate one kill. All I can say is I stumble around until I find a really stupid elk. Seems to be a lot of them. I don't ever feel embarrassed to take an easy one. There have been years when the not so stupid one really made me work. I did buy one of Paul's Play Books and Lil Chuckler when I killed this bull after applying for the tag for 21 years.



This bull, two satellite bulls and the third one was me. Guess he was more impressed with me than the other two.
It helps to have the Playbook with you so you can read it while you are chasing them down.

[TurkeyBowMaster]

In 2014 I set out for Montana for my first and only elk hunt. I arrived during a snow storm and was a good bit intimidated by the terrain and weather. With the help on Indian Summer I got on elk fairly quick but didn't hear any talking and there was lots of pressure in the area. After a couple of days I changed locations to an area I found on Google earth. The area looked to be the type spot where few would think held elk, and there were very few hunters in the area. It was there I heard my first bugle...I was hooked. I spent the next several days in this area and had several close encounters before reaching the last day.

The bulls were mostly quiet in my area and the last day was no exception. My chances looked slim but I pressed on and finally found some fresh sign in a small meadow. The wind was coming up from below so I dropped to the bottom of the meadow and setup at a location where my scent would blow out into the meadow and anything that came in could not get down wind without exposing himself to the wide open. From there I would cold call. Nothing answered for the first few calls and I began to doze off when a bugle penetrated the air. I guessed he was around 400 yards below and contemplated closing for a second when I caught movement comeing in from below. At 40 yards the smallest bull I had seen on the hunt stopped to thrash a fir and I was able to confirm he was legal. My plan worked as he soon worked his way inside 20 yards and I put a single arrow completely through him, penetrating his shoukderblade and out the other side. He ran down the hill and stopped, staggered and fell over. Just then I realised I had killed a silent bull that snuck in, which is probably what prompted the bull down below to bugle in the first place. When my bull crashed this bull really fired up and started coming. For whatever reason I didn't care and walked down to look at my bull and the bulging bull must have saw me because all was quiet on the mountain...just me in awe of the biggest thing I had ever shot.